About Me

This blog is my blissful journal of happiness. It’s about everything I adore and people I love. Thanks for stopping by. If you would like to write me, please feel free to email me: diana.mieczan@hotmail.comHave a jolly good day!

Inspirations are huge part of our life. Having an inspiration board, really does keep you inspired throughout the day. What would you put on yours? Pictures of family, friends? Or photos of random objects and places?
xoxoxo

If asked what would you choose: wallpaper or paint? I often struggled with the answer to this question till I discovered Studio Nommo. You just must have a look at this jungle of creativity! The main factor here is that Studio Nommo provides the costumer with so much choice and variety and as a bonus they are available to order online so if you fancy a change, then start clicking.
I’m a fan of calming, pastel and neutral combinations. The “baby trees” green and blue design is just stunning and so pure. For office space I would choose the “wired” wallpaper which as the Designer Jan Avendano describes is a puzzle-like hand drawn illustration for your attentive eyes.

(Baby Trees by StudioNommo)

(Wired by StudioNommo)

(Teapots by StudioNommo)

(Fox by StudioNommo)

(Neighbours by StudioNommo)

Aren’t they fabulous?

For those of you who are braver than me, I recommend the foxy design by Ashley which is so daring and bold. But if you are not brave enough to try one of those colourful and busy designs then how about making a statement with some amazing wall stickers. Studio Nommo also has variety of funky wall stickers which can brighter up your space and add some edge to you room.

(Spring Blossom by StudioNommo)

(Dragon Fly by StudioNommo)

(Under the Sea by Studio Nommo)

Seriously, aren’t they all such lively, stimulating designs. I just love them to bits!
Which one would you like to have in your home and where would you put it?

April will be a great month for all moms who are Gap crazy! From the first days of the month the new Stella McCartney Gap collection will be available in selected stores across the world. Starting off with United Stated, Canada, UK, and France moving to Ireland, Japan and even to Russia, Turkey, Greece and Asia. For those who prefer to shop online, the collection will be available on the official web from the 1st of April.

Those clothes are everything a little princess or little dude would want (or maybe what their moms would want... don't we all love those cute little bundles of joy). Stella describes her collection as very individual with great balance between simplicity and a lot of detailing. A perfect summer wardrobe for any kids, I would say :)

What is so great about those designs is that they are comfortable, colourful and easy to mix and match. Here are a few samples which I love!

Lets start with boys:

(Stella McCartney Rugby striped sweater, $58)

( photo via Gap.com)

(Stella McCartney hi-top sneakers, $48)

(photo via Gap.com)

Now time for girls:

(Stella McCartney Bailey sun dress, $58)

(photos via Gap.com)

(Stella McCartney piped dress, $52)

(phto via Gap.com)

This one is my absolute favourite! It is so French; I can imagine a little girl wearing it with a pair of blue flats and a flower pin in her hair :)

Lets not forget about babies:

(Stella McCartney eyelet dress, $58)

(photo via Gap.com)

(Stella McCartney Lula denim shirt,$38)

(photo via Gap.com)

(Stella McCartney Mercy butterfly shift dress, $58)

(photo via Gap.com)

This one is adorable with this vintage butterfly!

If you are hooked then make sure to check the Gap website for more of this beautiful madness!

And to all the mothers out there I put my hat down in admiration of your patience and multitasking abilities....I know that kids clothes are just one little thing for you to think of but isn't that a great thing?

Have a lovely day and let me know which pieces you find absolutely irrestable?

My Dearest how you feel about tees? I think they are an essential part of the wardrobe. You can dress it up with a fancy jacket or make it funkier with a great scarf but tee is a tee....and a good one does not come around everyday. I love my tees and I am always on a lookout for new designs. My main requirement is that it has to be cotton (I don’t like all that fake stuff). I just discovered a great designing duo Eric and Susan who own ModCloth. Their pieces are divine and their story fascinating. They started out at age of 17 and by now they have a successful business with an internationally recognized brand and a website viewed by over 10,000,000 women in the last two years. Amazing, don’t you think? Ok, ok enough of all that chat...here are the goods :)

The Frog Princess Tee,29.99$

(photo via ModCloth)

Runnin' Down a Dream Tee, $34.99

(photo via ModCloth)

Knotty Nautical Top, $75.99

(photo via ModCloth)

The Novel Tee in Maya, $27.99

(photo via ModCloth)

Rain Or Shine Tee, $29.99

(photo via ModCloth)

Aye,Aye Cat-ptain tee!

(photo via ModCloth)

The Novel Tee 27.99$

(photo via ModCloth)

Wasn't I right? They are fabulous. If by any chance it is cold or rainy and you cant wear your tee proudly without a cover then here is a sample of how to dress it up and still look like a dream!

I present you with 10 delicious, beautiful (presentation is always 50% of the success) and extremely yummy egg breakfast dishes. I hope you will try a few and let me know which are your favourites. Have a look :)

Put oven rack in upper third of oven and preheat oven to 450°F. Bring 1/2 inch water to a boil in a 10- to 12-inch ovenproof heavy skillet (not cast-iron), then add half of spinach and cook, turning with tongs, until wilted, about 30 seconds. Add remaining spinach and wilt in same manner, then cook, covered, over moderately high heat until spinach is tender, about 2 minutes. Drain in a colander and cool under cold running water. Gently squeeze handfuls of spinach to remove as much liquid as possible, and then coarsely chop.

Wipe skillet dry, then cook onion and garlic in butter over moderately low heat, stirring, until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and increase heat to moderate, then cook, stirring, until mushrooms are softened and have exuded liquid, about 3 minutes. Stir in cream, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and chopped spinach and bring to a simmer. Remove skillet from heat and make 4 large indentations in spinach mixture. Break an egg into each indentation and bake, uncovered, until egg whites are set but yolks are still runny, 7 to 10 minutes. Lightly season eggs with salt and pepper, and then sprinkle with cheese.

2.(photo from smittenkitchen.com)

2. Breakfast Pizza
(Adapted from The Big Sur Bakery Cookbook via an earlier version of it via smittenkitchen.com)

The night before, prepare the dough: Place 3/4 cup lukewarm water in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. Sprinkle in the yeast, stir and let sit for 5 minutes. Add the flour and 1 teaspoon of salt and mix on low for 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium and mix for 2 minutes, then increase the speed to high and mix until a smooth dough forms, about 2 minutes more. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, divide into two equal pieces and form each half into a tight ball. Place on a large floured sheet pan, place the pan in a plastic garbage bag, tie the bag loosely and refrigerate overnight.
One to two hours before baking, place the dough in a warm spot. Adjust the oven rack to the lowest position and set a pizza stone on it. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees 30 minutes before you are ready to bake the pizza.
Prepare the dough and toppings: Fry the bacon in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat until crisp. Cool on a paper-towel-lined plate; roughly chop.
Dip your hands and a ball of dough into the flour. On a lightly floured countertop, pat the dough into a disc with your fingertips, then drape the dough over your fists and carefully stretch it from beneath to form a 12-inch circle.
Generously dust the surface of a pizza peel or large inverted sheet pan with flour and place the stretched dough on it. Sprinkle the dough with half of the Parmesan, mozzarella and bacon. Crack 3 eggs over the top and season with salt and pepper.
Bake the pizza: Shake the pizza peel slightly to make sure the dough is not sticking. Carefully lift any sections that are sticking and sprinkle a bit more flour underneath, then slide the pizza directly onto the baking stone in one quick forward-and-back motion. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, rotating after 5 minutes. When the crust is golden, the cheese is melted and the egg yolks are cooked, use the peel to transfer the pizza to a cutting board. Sprinkle half of the parsley, chives, scallions and shallot on top. Let cool for 2 minutes, slice and serve immediately. Prepare the second pizza in the same way.

In a small skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add garlic and crushed red pepper; cook, stirring, until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Add tomato sauce and bring to a boil; season with sugar, salt and pepper. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 10 to 20 minutes. A few minutes before it’s done, I like to add a glug of red wine and let it simmer for a moment.
Gently crack eggs into tomato mixture, cover, and let cook 5 minutes. Remove skillet from heat, uncover, and let stand 2 to 3 minutes.
Transfer each egg to a piece of toast. Spoon over sauce, garnish with cheese, and season with salt and pepper; serve immediately.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Mix in the milk and cheese. Add the bread and carefully stir until all pieces of bread are moistened (don't over mix or the bread may disintegrate). Add additions. Add salt and pepper to taste (if using Italian sausage, you won't need either.) Butter a 13 x 9 inch casserole dish. Pour mix into casserole dish. Bake in oven for 50 minutes to an hour, until the top is browned and the center springs back when touched. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

6.(photo from westvillagekitchen.com)

6. The “Smoke-um If You Got-um” Omelette

(Adapted from Eastvillagekitchen.com)

Required:
3 eggs, beaten (less if it’s just you, more if you have additional people)
salt and fresh ground pepper
olive oil

Squeez the lime over the avocado halves (for flavor and to prevent them from turning brown) and chop them into small pieces. Slice the onion and put it in a saucepan over low to medium heat with a little sugar to make quick caramelized onions. Top the egg base of an omelette with all of the ingredients, allow them to get hot, and there you have it. A perfect Sunday brunch!

1. Fill a large saucepan with about 4 inches of water, add vinegar, and bring to a boil. Fill a shallow dish or pie plate with warm water. Reduce heat under saucepan to medium, so water is just barely simmering. Break 1 egg at a time into a small heat-proof bowl. Gently tip bowl into water; carefully slide egg into water. Repeat with remaining eggs.
2. When eggs begin to become opaque, remove them from the saucepan with a slotted spoon in the order in which they were added. Transfer the eggs to the dish of warm water. This process should take about 3 minutes.
3. Prepare the hollandaise sauce, and set aside, keeping it warm.
4. Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add Canadian bacon, and cook until well browned on both sides. Divide bacon among the English-muffin halves. For each serving, use a slotted spoon to remove one egg from warm water; set spoon and egg briefly on a clean cloth or paper towel to drain. Gently place the egg on a bacon-topped muffin, and spoon the reserved warm hollandaise sauce over the top.

1 Preheat oven to 180C/gas 4. Butter 4 ramekins or ovenproof tea cups and coat with grated parmesan.
2 Cook the spinach in a little butter and extra-virgin olive oil over a medium heat for 2–3 minutes. When wilted, spoon into a colander and press out any liquid. Finely chop, then mix in a bowl with the cream, a good grating of nutmeg, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Mix in the haddock.
3 Divide the spinach between the ramekins, then crack an egg into each, and pour around a little of the extra cream. Sprinkle with salt and black pepper, then bake on a tray for about 20 minutes, until the whites are set and yolks are done to your liking. Serve with buttered soda-bread toast.

9.( photo from Martha Stewart)

9. Asparagus with Poached Egg

(From Martha Stewart Living, May 2009)

A poached egg on a pile of tender steamed asparagus is a fine meal; a shaving of hard aged cheese, such as Parmesan, is an added treat -- and don't forget freshly ground pepper.

Directions
1. Tie asparagus into a bundle using kitchen twine. Place in the basket of an asparagus pot filled with 1 inch water. Cover, and bring water to a boil. Steam asparagus until tender, 2 to 6 minutes.
2. Fill a large saucepan with 4 inches of water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium. When water is barely simmering, break 1 egg into a small heatproof bowl. Gently tip bowl, sliding egg carefully into water. Repeat with remaining eggs. Cook until whites are set but yolks are soft, 2 to 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer eggs to paper towels, and drain briefly.
3. Divide asparagus among 4 plates, and top each with an egg. Drizzle with oil, sprinkle with Parmesan, and season with salt and pepper.

Directions
In a bowl, whisk together egg, egg whites, and tofu; season with salt and pepper.
In a small non-stick skillet, heat oil over medium-high; add bell pepper and scallion whites. Cook until scallion has browned, 3 to 5 minutes; transfer to a plate. Add egg mixture to skillet; cook, stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula, just until set, 2 to 3 minutes. Top with bell-pepper mixture and scallion greens.

Easter is just around the corner and I am looking forward to create something special this year. I found this little project the other day on Darby website and I am definitely up for the challenge. It is not too complicated but so sweet and it will make a great little present for family and friends. I am little short on time (Derby says that you need about 2 weeks for the grass to get long and beautiful), but I am hoping to be ready by 5th of April! (fingers crossed).

If you are up for a challenge then here are instructions to how to create your own little grass eggs:
First and for most save your eggs (with us it's easy, because Balazs makes us a soft boil egg each morning....tick). Then you should fill each egg with potting soil and then water the soil before putting it in the eggs. Sometimes potting soil doesn’t like to (or takes a while to) absorb water, give it time and fill each egg a little over half way. The grass seed you can get in your local flower shop or gardening centre and I bet it’s very cheap. You should add a spoonful of grass to each egg and then lightly water the seeds. Of course you should put the shells in a sunny window, and don’t forget to water them about every other day.

Happy Planting!!!!!

While concentrating on this shell project I started to think about all things eggs, and egg cups and did you know that one egg provides more than 6 grams of high-quality protein, a range of essential B vitamins, and all the amino acids your body needs to preserve and build muscle mass, according to a recently published study in the journal Nutrition Today. That's a pretty good deal!
Scrambled, devilled, or hard-boiled (my favourite) eggs are easy to make and a great protein bust for the morning and lets not forget that egg is one of our most flexible foods, the little oval can be whipped up for a satisfying, on-the-spot meal or made ahead and packed to go and provides a great energy bust, which I find necessary in the morning.
I am on the mission to bring you 10 great and easy breakfast recipes (watch this space...I hope I can post them tomorrow).
Of course what would be an egg without a stylish, funny or cosy egg cup. Here are a few of my favourites:

Make a ho-hum morning a little more special with these fun and fanciful chicken feet egg cups. Made from porcelain! Dishwasher, microwave and oven safe. Set of 4 costs 15.95$ from StonewallKitchen.com

Perfect for the breakfast table these egg shaped ceramic salt and pepper shakers are a wonderful addition to any table and they match the yellow egg cups....adorable :). You can get those in StonewallKitchen.com for 12.95$ per set.

If you're ever in need of an egg cup at the bottom of the ocean one of these creatures will come in handy. With eight tentacles to fend off predators, your boiled egg will be well protected and there'll be no fear of Mr Shark getting his fins on it. You don't have to be under water to enjoy this egg cup though, as it works just as well on dry land, on your plate. It is very different from traditional egg cups and it's great for making breakfast fun, especially for kids. You will receive one egg cup in red, blue, pink or purple for just £3.59 from omlet.co.uk

Breakfast is such a groovy time of day, baby! Well alright most of us aren't quite up to full speed at 7am but this retro egg cup will raise a smile when it pulls up in front of you. This is also the much sought after split screen version of the famous VW camper van that is the vehicle of choice for every beach loving surf boiled egg. Isn't that just fantastic and it costs only £9.55 for the 3 car set. Wow!!!

This is one of my absolute favourites. It is soooooo French with those adorable stripes all tall, elegant and presented in a lovely gift box, is just the thing for a sophisticated early morning boiled egg and it costs just £8.55 at omlet.co.uk

Here is a set of 4 coloured egg cups. Geometri 1 was designed for the hotel/restaurant Astoria in Trodheim, Norway and is today one of Verner Panton's best known patterns. Geometri 1 consists of circles and squares which are arranged in different proportions. Those designs are created by: Verner Panton & Pernille Vea who is just genius!!! Those egg cups are little bit more expensive and they come with a price tag of £24.95 for the set of 4 from caabliving.com. It is so worth every penny. Don't you think so?

The last but not the least. Here is a beautiful, more sophisticated egg cup for the artist in you - a striking egg cube and spoon design that will make a visual statement at the breakfast table. This beauty was created by Kathleen Hills and it’s on a retail price of £17.50. If you are interested you can order it from http://www.mylivingspace.co.uk/

All that egg talk made me hungry for some egg omelette. Make sure to check the blog later for some great egg recipes.
What eggs you like to eat for breakfast or anytime of the day? Have a lovely sunny Saturday, darlings.

One more thing. I had this one saved for a while on my desktop and I waited for the right time to post it (meaning the time I understand it completely). Today is the day! I had an unpleasant phone call today and I am refusing to let me down (..I am my own worst enemy...I always find a reason to blame myself for everything). But not this time, I am really inspired.....I am making a change!!!!

It's Friday. It has been a very busy and eventful week. Starting with my mom's visit and finishing on catching up on work and household chores...mostly laundry, lots and lots of laundry...

After all that hard work we decided to indulge ourselves with something sweet but healthy at the same time. While reading my dailies, this yummy fruit pizza popped up. Love pizza, love fruit. Perfect combo! Don’t you think it looks divine!!!!

Here is how to do Mom's Fruit Pizza if you would like to try it yourself: